Mistaken
by Angie5
Summary: A girl, thrust into a popular crowd is confronted with a choice. If she participates in their prank, it goes against what she stands for. But if she joins in the taunting of an outcast, it's the only way to get accepted. Please read and review.


THE JELL-O STORY (Note: As many of you know, my English journal is full of many interesting, fabricated stories based on real events. I imagine that Miss Hogan has a wonderful time reading it at the end of the quarter. When the assignment was describe your Thanksgiving and why family is important in a personal narrative format, I wrote about the Thanksgiving day-before party I went to a friend's party when they all got drunk. I don't remember what that had to do with family, but it was fun. Anyway, I write interesting crap in this journal. Today, I had to describe I felt peer pressure to do something I shouldn't, what I did and how I felt afterwards. The names and events in this story have been changed to prevent their true identities. My scenario is as follows.)  
  
She was an outcast. No friends, no personality, no hope. Although Rachel was a very intellectual girl, this failed to win her recognition in our grade. We shunned her and snickered at her rumpled clothing and the dazed expression she wore.  
I'm not sure why Jen picked on her so much. Psychiatrists would say it was to higher her self-esteem by degrading someone else, but Jen had the highest self-esteem and the most easy-going attitude towards everything, so that couldn't be it. I didn't understand why we were so cruel to Rachel, but I learned to accepted it. Maybe she was a bit.eccentric, but that didn't mean we had to be vindictive, I had thought. But it was one of those things: the sky is blue, the Earth is round, Rachel is an outcast. Most likely, Jen saw mocking Rachel amusing. Since Jen found it amusing, we all found it amusing.  
It wasn't like she publicly humiliated Rachel. She would just say little cutting things to her, hide her backpack so she turned around several times like a trained dog...mostly psychological things.  
Her attitude towards Rachel developed into actions one Tuesday at lunch. We were sitting around our lunch table, happily copying each other's homework when Rachel wandered in. She walked right up to our lunch table and stood there with a perplexed expression on her face.  
"Yes?" said Jen pleasantly after a moment, grinning at me. I didn't grin back.  
"I sit here," commented Rachel blankly.  
"When do you do that, Rachel?" asked Jen slowly, as if speaking to a small, dumb child.  
"Why are you here?" questioned Rachel vacantly, either not noticing or not caring that Jen had asked her a question.  
"Like, this is our lunch table," Leslie injected. Jen quieted her with a finger.  
  
"This is our lunch table, Rachel." Jen smiled mockingly. "5th period. 12:05."  
"I sit here sixth period," she said slowly.  
Jen held up her hands in astonishment. "Well then. Mystery solved." Jen went back to her yogurt as a puzzled Rachel stood next to her. "Don't you have somewhere to be?"  
"Math."  
"Well, go!" said Jen irritably.  
"She has such issues," commented Leslie. "I mean, this is fifth period! Not sixth period." She was quiet for a moment. "Oh my God, do you think she sits in my chair?" She jumped up quickly, anxious not to catch any stray Rachel germs that might be wandering about.  
"I doubt she's contagious, Leslie." Jen brushed her hair out of her eyes. "Isn't it irritating that for someone so smart, she expects us to think for her? Drives me cra-zy."  
"Maybe she's just one of those weird scholar people who are so preoccupied thinking about the theory of the Grenville Orogeny that they cannot be concerned thinking about trivial matters like math class," I said in her defense.  
Jen regarded me for a moment. "Perhaps."  
"What's a Greenwich Orgy?" whispered Leslie to Alicia in puzzlement.  
"I don't know. I've never been to Harlem," Alicia whispered back.  
"I'd like to figure out a way to awaken her to the real world," said Jen thoughtfully.  
"Rudely?" asked Megan eagerly.  
"Precisely. I'm thinking.." A broad smile grew on her face. "Ever seen that Pop-Tart commercial with the boy who opens his locker-"  
"And the fish fall out and one hits him in the face?" interrupted Gina fervently. She grinned. "I love that commercial."  
Jen frowned at Gina. "Apparently. As I was saying," she continued, "a boy opens his locker and numerous trout fall on him. He stares blankly as a fish tail-kicks him in the face." She paused. "I think that would be entertaining, if we did that to Rachel."  
Killing innocent fish for a practical joke? I thought to myself. That is not a good idea. "I don't think that's a good idea," I remarked.  
"Why?"  
"Well.for one, why should we waste fish? You know, taking them from their fish homes and fish families..and little fish lives," I added.  
"They're fish."  
"Ew! I'm not touching a dead fish," squealed Nan. "They're scaly.  
"They smell," put in Alicia.  
"They have scary eyes," threw it Leslie. "They do," she said defensively when we all cast her looks.  
"Okay, so fish are out," said Jen. She leaned back and took a pencil out of her ponytail. "Any suggestions?"  
The suggestions went on for a while before it became Jell-O. Specifically lime green, homemade.  
"Now, we need a plan." Jen began making a list. "Who's making the Jell-O?"  
"I volunteer," said Nan gallantly.  
"Two people to pour the Jell-O-O in the locker?" Leslie and Alicia agreed. Jen smiled.  
"That leaves one person. Our class lock-picker." Her green eyes locked with mine as I began to protest.  
"Guys, I don't know about this. I mean, it's her locker. She has her books with her." Jen's eyes narrowed as I continued objecting to her brilliant scheme. "Teasing is one thing, but ruining her whole set of textbooks is completely different."  
"Fact number one; We will do it in the morning when her books are in her backpack." She held up a second finger in my face. "Two-we'll only do it to her top locker. It's not a catastrophe, she'll just get some luscious lime green, delectable gelatin dessert on her locker." She smiled good- naturedly. "See? No vandalism. Just a little joke between friends." Jen offered me a potato chip. "And as friends, I am asking you a favor. Just open her locker. We're not placing a bomb there or anything. Just a little Jell-O. A little joke."  
I took a deep breath and succumbed. "Fine," I grumbled.  
"Excellent," commended Jen.  
"One problem." I was glad to be the one to tell Jen that her meticulous planning had one omission.  
"What?"  
"Do any of us know where her locker is?"  
We were going to meet outside our global classroom at 3:00 and watch for Rachel. Most of the lockers were in that area and we knew a place would be cleared when Rachel walked by.  
Three o'clock came and went with no sign of Rachel. Jen grew more and more impatient as time dragged on.  
"I have a manicure at a quarter to four," commented Alicia to Gina. "Think she'll let me go?"  
Jen glared at them.  
Rachel showed up five minutes later, dragging a heavy backpack with her. She approached locker 795.  
Jen advanced towards Rachel. "Rachel!" she exclaimed in surprise. "Fancy meeting you here."  
Rachel surveyed Jen as she opened her combination lock. "Fancy," she muttered. 30.she turned to the right, 5 then to the left, 1. 30-5-1. Got it.  
"What are you doing at school at this time?" commented Jen.  
"I had a Mathlete competition. It ended early." Rachel began removing textbooks from her upper locker.  
"I wonder why?" inquired Jen, winking at her friends.  
"No one else should up. I couldn't compete."  
Jen spread her hands wide. "Well, there you are!" she exclaimed as if she and Rachel were together sharing one of Life's great ironies.  
Rachel observed Jen impassively. "There you are," she repeated, slamming her locker shut.  
"Get the combo?" asked Jen perkily.  
"Yeah."  
Jen smiled and put her arm around me. "You've done a noble thing," she said. "Our deeds will go down in school history," she predicted.  
I couldn't help but feel like her accomplice. 


End file.
